Reporters on the Job

July 18, 2007

• A Face Skinny Enough for TV: When reporter Andrew Miller went to interview American actor Jonathan Kos-Read, he was invited along to the set of a Chinese film Mr. Kos-Read was working on (see story). Before long, Andrew had a part, too.

"The director asked me if I wanted to be Lawyer No. 3. Amazingly, they found a suit that fit me perfectly," he says.

"I just sat there while they filmed me from different angles. I will probably be edited out. But it gave me new respect for acting and how difficult it is to produce authentic emotions under hot lights, itchy suits, and with make-up artists buzzing by every few minutes to add powder to your face," he says.

The film, directed by Gu Rong, is about an American architect (Mr. Kos-Read) competing with a Chinese architect for an Olympic contract. The Chinese architect has been falsely blamed for the collapse of a building. The American, sensing a rare opportunity, tries to win the bid. In the end, the Chinese architect prevails.

During another interview, Andrew spoke with a Chinese casting agent. She volunteered that his Mandarin was just about good enough for television, but not film. And, she said before inviting him to come back with a résumé, his face wasn't "too fat." "I guess some Westerners have faces that appear too plump on camera," says Andrew.